Apocalypse Rebirth: 3000 million won at the beginning

Chapter 2159 The Number of Newborns Surges!
"And what about you, Lao Hong? What are you doing at headquarters?" Huoshi asked.

Hong Shixiong replied with a smile:

"Me? I'm just like you. I came to the headquarters to see if there are any business opportunities."

As he spoke, he offered her a cigarette and asked:
"Brother Huoshi, how many days have you been at headquarters?"

Flint took the cigarette, looked up, and replied:

“I’ve been here for three days. Brother Six Fingers and Fat Tiger are currently inspecting the Buffer City. I’ve come to Edge City to take a look.”

Hong Shixiong looked around, somewhat surprised, and said:
"The construction speed of the outskirts of the headquarters base is pretty fast; so many houses have already been built."

"By the way, you've been here for a few days. Do you think it's appropriate to do business here at headquarters?"

After pondering for a moment, Huoshi said:
"Well, I feel there's definitely a chance. Some things are much cheaper here at the headquarters than in the oil city, in terms of clothing, food, housing, and transportation."
Aside from the fact that basic items like tortillas sold in stores are priced the same, most food items at the headquarters base are 20% cheaper than in the oil city.

Clothes are about the same price, but about 10% cheaper, and accommodation is also cheaper.

The headquarters base has more abundant supplies, but about half of the shops here are official, about 20% are joint ventures, and only 30% are solely privately operated.

"From what I've observed, the regular businesses at the headquarters base are already being done by existing people, and there are fewer people here than in the oil city, so the demand is relatively small."

"However, your insurance business isn't being conducted privately at the headquarters."

Hong Shixiong's eyes lit up when he heard this.

This feeling is good.

The government is getting involved in insurance, but government is government after all, and there are both advantages and disadvantages.

They can offer customized services, which can attract a segment of clients. While the government profits, these small businesses can also get a share of the profits.

Since no one is doing this at the headquarters now, he could take this opportunity to open an insurance company there.

"Thank you, Brother Huo. I'm new here. Why don't you show me around Buffer City? I'll treat you to dinner with Brother Six Fingers and the others."

Huoshi nodded and asked:

"Where are your two good brothers? Didn't they come with you?"

Hong Shixiong shrugged helplessly and said:

"They're still in the oil city; someone needs to watch the shops there."

Huoshi said:

"Okay, alright. We're already so familiar with each other. You'll come with me into the buffer city later. The camphor tree headquarters base is huge, much bigger than the oil city. Just follow me and don't get lost."

He then pulled out a map of the headquarters base in the camphor tree area from his pocket. "Here, this is a map of the headquarters base. You can explore it yourself later."

"Actually, the headquarters base here is similar to the oil city, divided into an inner city, an outer city, a buffer city, and a peripheral city."

However, we can only stay in buffer cities and peripheral cities; we can't enter the inner or outer cities.

Hong Shixiong opened the map, which only showed the edge city and buffer city, while the inner city and outer city were blank.

"Row."

Just then, the electric bus drove by.

"The bus is here, let's get on. This bus will take us directly to the buffer city." Firestone stubbed out his cigarette in the trash can next to him.

Hong Shixiong quickly followed Huoshi and joined the queue for the bus.

The bus was already full, so the passengers had to stand.

Drop drop-

The electric bus sounded its door-closing alarm, and the two people huddled in the passenger compartment watched as the bus doors closed.

The vehicle started and wobbled along the predetermined route.

The train was extremely crowded.

Some people were chatting, and Hong Shixiong pricked up his ears, hoping to glean some information about the headquarters from their conversation.
Two women's voices came from behind.

"Shangguan Hui, let's go get our hair cut and manicures done together later."

"No, my husband is back from the mine, I need to go back early."

"Oh dear, Old Sun treats you badly. If I were you, I wouldn't stay with him."

"Old Sun is really good to me. He transfers all his points to my points card every month. He doesn't hit me. He's just a bit quiet and not very romantic. He works so hard at the mine, it's not easy for him either."

"But you, I don't think Feng Biao is a good person. He clearly has a wife and children, yet he still messed with you."

"Oh dear! Feng Biao transferred 200 points to me last month. So what if he has a wife and kids? I'm happy with that. On the contrary, your husband only earns 150 points a month working at the mine."

"So what? Old Sun's job is stable. He earns 150 points, and he'll give me all of them. But Feng Biao supposedly struck it rich last month, earning several thousand points, but he'll only give you 200."

Hong Shixiong pursed his lips, turned to the right, and listened to the conversation of the people sitting by the window:

"Have you heard? A few days ago, some people from Taiwan came, and I heard that many of them were assigned to factories and laboratories under the research institute."

“I know, I saw a few in the Buffer City Industrial Zone a few days ago.”

"Our big camphor tree is getting more and more amazing. People from Taiwan don't even know how they got here, since they're separated by the sea."

"Who knows?"

Suddenly, Hong Shixiong heard the voice of a little boy standing in front of him.

The little boy was holding the hand of a bald, burly man.

"Dad, I need to pee."

"No, you can't hold it in a little longer. We'll be at the buffer city soon. I'll take you to the toilet after we get off the bus."

"I can't help it anymore."

"."

"Damn it, keep an eye on your son. Letting him wet his pants is one thing, but you made him take his pants off and pee on my shoes! These are the latest models, the same style as the military boots! Clean them up! Apologize to me, and this will be over!"

"Dad, I deliberately peed on him because he wouldn't give us his seat."

"Ahem. Don't speak." The father looked at the young man and said:

"He's just a kid, why are you arguing with a kid?"

"Heh? What the hell? You're telling me this? He did it on purpose. Like father, like son, damn it!"

The young man snorted and loosened his belt.

A commotion arose from the surroundings.

"What are you doing if not you?"

"Damn, man, that's awesome! I support you!"

"Oh dear! There are women here too, be mindful of your behavior!"

Hong Shixiong quickly squeezed to the back.

Centered around the little boy, his father, and the young man, they managed to carve out a considerable space in the crowded carriage.

Zizzi~
The little boy got soaked, and even his father got quite a bit wet.

The boy's father cursed:
"I'm a bastard!"

The young man, not to be outdone, retorted, "I'll fuck your ass too!"

The little boy suddenly stepped forward, grabbed the young man's hand and bit him, but the young man quickly waved his hand to break free.

The little boy's eyes hardened, and he stepped forward and shoved the young man.

Upon seeing this, the young man glanced behind him and saw someone there, but nothing hard or sharp.

He closed his eyes and collapsed.

Even though the people behind him didn't want to support him, the space was so small that they were forced to support the young man.

Then they gently placed him on the ground.

The carriage was in complete chaos.

"You're hitting someone?!"

Someone's dead!!

With a creak, the electric bus came to a sudden stop.

The driver angrily pushed through the crowd, looked at the young man lying on the ground, then at the little boy with wet hair and his father, and smelled a strong stench of urine.

said angrily:

"You've got nothing better to do all day, haven't you? Making a scene in the car, what's going on?"

After being told what happened by enthusiastic onlookers, the driver finally found out.

The boy's father quickly defended himself:

“My son is only ten years old. He fell down with just a light push. He was just faking it. He was faking it. He'll definitely be fine.”

"Why are you lying there if nothing's wrong?" The driver frowned as he looked at the father and son, then picked up his communicator to contact the patrol team.

The patrol team moved very quickly and arrived at the location three minutes later.

After understanding the situation, the patrol team members lifted the young man out of the car and then had him taken to the buffer city hospital.

"You and your son, don't go anywhere," the patrolman warned the father and son as they tried to slink away.

"Your urinating on each other doesn't count as fighting, but your son did, so you're at fault. You'll have to cover all his subsequent medical checkups and treatment costs. Also, your son violated the regulations, and as his guardian, you must be punished. Your points will be deducted, and we'll inform you of the specific penalties later."

The young man, the father and son, and the patrol members all got out of the car.

The driver continued to let passengers onto the bus and drove them toward the buffer zone.

Hong Shixiong, who was in the car, witnessed the whole thing from beginning to end. He then said to Huoshi beside him with some emotion:
"The residents of this headquarters base have pretty abstract minds."

Huoshi had seen all sorts of monsters and freaks in the arena and gambling dens, and laughed:

"What's so surprising? Several people have been running around naked in the oil city before. Their thinking is pretty advanced."

A few minutes later, the vehicle entered the buffer zone.

Huoshi and Hong Shixiong got out of the car.

Hong Shixiong stretched his arms and took a couple of breaths of fresh air.

"The landscaping here at the headquarters is better than in the oil city, but everything else seems about the same."

Huoshi smiled and patted Hong Shixiong on the shoulder:
"Come on, I'll take you to find my older brother and the others. They're at the entertainment center in the commercial district right now."

The first outer city of Dazhangshu.

Administrative building.

The leader's office.

Li Yu crossed his legs, brewed tea, and watched He Chao enter.

He asked, "Where is the president?"

He Chao quickly replied, "The chairman is still discussing some things with Director Ding and Minister Liu Jianwu."

"Well, tell me, what was said at the conference?" Li Yu stood up and randomly picked a book from the bookshelf.

He Chao opened his laptop and stood up to report to Li Yu:

"The attendees at this monthly summary report meeting included the chairman and Director Ding Jiu."
Online participants included Lü Cheng, Wu Genhong, Qin Luoshu, and Chu Juan from the Northern Frontier.
Luo Sanchang, He Liangwei, and others from the Northwest Branch Base.

"Li Hongqian, former minister of the oil city; Li Zhengping, captain of the brigade; Liu Jinglue, logistics supervisor; Zhong Chuchu, deputy logistics supervisor; and Huang Guangyuan, supervisor of the trading market."

Upon hearing these familiar names, Li Yu waved his hand and said:
"Keep it concise and to the point; there's no need to repeat repetitive information."

The development of Dazhangshu is very rapid, so in addition to holding an annual summary meeting at the headquarters every year for the heads of various branch bases.

They also hold weekly meetings and monthly summary reports.

This is used to implement the orders issued by the big camphor tree, check the progress, and coordinate resources and personnel to resolve any slow progress or problems that arise.

The structure of the large camphor tree is relatively simple compared to before the apocalypse.

However, precisely because it is relatively streamlined, the efficiency of conveying policy orders is relatively high, with fewer procedures and personnel involved.

The attendees at each weekly meeting are different from those at the monthly meetings.

For example, weekly meetings are usually only attended by the heads of each branch base.

The monthly meetings are attended by personnel at the supervisor level or above.

Moreover, each meeting is very short, usually lasting between 2 and 5 hours.

Li Yu doesn't attend weekly meetings often, and he only attends monthly summary reports occasionally.

However, at every weekly and monthly meeting, a designated person would take notes and summarize the key points to report to Li Yu.

He Chao was the one who came to report.

Hearing that Li Yu wanted a brief report, he hesitated for a few seconds before saying:

"Let's talk about the results first."

"As of this month, the population of the Dazhangshu Headquarters Base has reached 163 million."

"The headquarters base has a population of 40."

The total population of the oil city has reached 80.

The total population of the North reached 20.

The population of Oriental Paradise has reached 15.

The population of the five bases in the Northwest reached 8.

"The number of newborns reached 5000 last month, breaking the historical record! And the birth rate is increasing month by month!"

Upon hearing this number, Li Yu smiled slightly.

Five months ago, the population of Dazhangshu was only 100 million.

In just five months, 61 people were added, averaging 12 new people per month. However, when spread across the five bases, that means each base added about 2 people per month.

What makes Li Yu happy is the birth rate of newborns.

It was worth it for him to introduce a series of policies to encourage childbirth.

Newborns in the camphor tree's territory will be rewarded with 1000 points.

But these 1000 points will be distributed to the newborn's parents over 10 years.

You get 100 points a year, which is an average of 8 points a month.

It reduced their life stress.

This is the core reason that has truly driven up the birth rate of newborns in Dazhangshu.

A tortilla only costs 0.25 points, and the price has remained unchanged for many years.

If a child eats only one tortilla a day, one tortilla won't starve him.

It only takes 0.25 points a day, and about 8 points a month.

Eating only tortillas may cause various health problems, but at least you won't starve to death!
This is equivalent to the big camphor tree providing them with a safety net.

As long as you dare to give birth, the big camphor tree can at least help you raise your child.

Furthermore, those who are married and have children will be given priority in job opportunities and will also receive certain support in terms of promotion.

In addition, tuition fees for newborns are extremely low.

And so on. A series of policies were introduced, which caused a baby boom to take place in the camphor tree's forces in this dangerous apocalypse.

“However,” He Chao continued, “…”

"But last month, for the first time, the growth rate of the influx of survivors from outside the region declined."

"Each branch base mentioned that the propaganda campaign has been underway for quite some time, and most survivors in the cities should have seen our propaganda advertisements. The rate of influx of outsiders will gradually slow down in the future."

"Hmm." Li Yu nodded, not surprised at all.

According to discussions among experts from various departments at the headquarters and the oil city, it was estimated that the number of survivors was only around six million. In a world of 14 billion people, the survival rate after an apocalypse would be less than 0.5%.

However, after the extensive publicity campaign, the population of Dazhangshu increased dramatically from several hundred thousand to over a million, which is quite remarkable.

(End of this chapter)